Fishin in the Dark
by lostcowgirl
Summary: Matt & Kitty met 3 1/2 years ago. An unseasonably warm May day brings out another side of Matt Dillon. He takes advantage of the weather & the relative quiet of his town to take the half owner of the Long Branch for the past year for some nighttime fishing. This romantic interlude was inspired by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band song of the same title as my story.


Fishin' in the Dark

Fishin' in the Dark

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Lazy yellow moon comin' up tonight  
Shinin' through the trees  
Crickets are singin' and lightning bugs  
Are floatin' on the breeze  
Baby get ready

Across the field where the creek turns back  
By the old stump road  
I'm gonna take you to a special place  
That nobody knows  
Baby get ready, ooh

You and me going fishing in the dark  
Lying on our backs and counting the stars  
Where the cool grass grows  
Down by the river in the full moon light  
We'll be fallin' in love in the middle of the night  
Just movin' slow

Stayin' the whole night through  
Feels so good to be with you  
Spring is almost over and the summer's come  
And the days are gettin' long  
Waited all winter for the time to be right  
Just to take you along, baby get ready

And it don't matter if we sit forever  
And the fish don't bite  
Jump in the river and cool ourselves  
From the heat of the night  
Baby get ready, ooh

Songwriters: Jim Photoglo / Wendy Waldman

Matt Dillon and Kitty Russell couldn't ask for a better day to turn his hinted at plans into reality. It was unseasonably warm even for this late in May under clear skies. It felt like a perfect summer day and promised to be an even better night with a full moon to light there way out of town. The herds had begun trickling in to be shipped out on the eastbound Santa Fe. There were some cowboys still whooping it up, but they would sleep off the night before and not disturb the peace until sundown. If the lawman and classiest saloon in town half owner were lucky, Dodge would remain quiet through the night. Kitty wondered if whatever surprise that lovable yet sometimes unbearable man planned for them would go up in smoke – gun smoke. It happened far too often.

The town was still quiet when Matt completed his evening rounds. Thus, the United States Marshal headquartered in Dodge City felt he could leave his assistant Chester Goode in charge of the jail and keeping the peace while Kitty let her partner Bill Pence deal with the Long Branch customers. The two of them would be able to fish at the secluded spot he'd found along the Arkansas River while the rest of the inhabitants went about their business. Accordingly, Matt brought his buckskin and her mare to the back of the saloon. He'd already stashed a picnic basket, bottle of champagne that was cooling in the river water, fishing poles and bait at the chosen spot.

As he waited at dusk for her to appear Matt couldn't help but think a drunk would stumble into the horses as he waited for Kitty to join him. The animals would shy and whinny, making enough noise to bring everyone out of the saloon and every other open business in town, leaving him to try to explain what he and two saddled horses were doing there. His luck held.

Matt's face lit up in the boyish grin he knew was shear magic to his redhead. Kitty, in turn, dressed in a blue calico split riding skirt, so she didn't require her sidesaddle, and a blouse whose color matched her hair, worked a spell on him. Briefly brushing two sets of lips together, taking a slight chance that nobody would see, the gentleman lifted his lady onto her saddle. In a moment they were riding down the alley and then diagonally across Front Street to the nearest alley on the far side in the general direction of the river.

Gradually they made their way to the trail that ran in and out of cover along the north river bank until they reached a spot where the water could be forded without getting more than their mounts' fetlocks wet. They rode on for another mile west where the trail, just wide enough for them to ride side by side, came to an abrupt end. Kitty looked questioningly at her handsome companion. Even if it were midday the water wouldn't be visible. They weren't close enough, with or without the seemingly impenetrable barrier of cottonwoods and bushes.

"Matt Dillon, this is too much," the redhead hissed. "There isn't even room to spread out those bedroll blankets you tied on behind your saddle and mine. And if you could manage to unroll them fully, we'd be visible to any drifter heading for the lights of town."

"Kitty, have a little patience. By now you know me well enough to realize I'm not a total fool," he added while he dismounted and walked to the side of her mare to help her join him on the ground. "Follow me."

Taking the reins of his horse, Matt led them toward the barrier. Kitty nearly gasped when he disappeared at a spot where the branches seemed impossibly intertwined. Holding back a panicked shout, she followed in his wake. What she saw when she joined him was a moonlit Kansas paradise. The full moon and a now completely dark sky full of stars revealed a grassy expanse with ample room to spread out both bedrolls along the shore at a bend in the Arkansas River that formed a deep pool.

Within this hidden landscape was a smaller version of the thicket that hid this very private sanctuary. After untying the bedrolls, which he handed to Kitty to place in whatever spot she chose, Matt strode toward the small thicket. He soon disappeared inside it only to emerge with the picnic basket and fishing gear. Just as he'd hoped, Kitty chose a spot to settle on the grass within spitting distance of where he'd stashed the champagne in the cool water, adjacent to a pile of wood waiting to be turned into a campfire. Matt dropped what he carried beside her and returned to the horses to retrieve his saddlebags, which contained all they'd need to cook a meal with the exception of matches.

As Matt revealed the contents of his saddlebags Kitty began to laugh. She laughed even harder when they settled side by side on the grassy shore, their baited hooks in the water just beyond the carefully anchored champagne bottle. Her sometimes-bumbling cowboy when it came to women had thought of everything, except maybe the means to easily light the fire if they managed to catch a couple of catfish to complete their supper. Who knew hidden beneath that stoic marshal was a romantic, she mused.

The couple lay side-by-side looking up at the stars when not gazing into each other's eyes to see the reflected moonlight there. The background song of nearby crickets further lulled them until their eyes ceased looking anywhere, the lids closing as they slowly morphed from relaxed to dozing. That is, until a big ole catfish pulled on Kitty's line followed immediately by an even bigger one that nearly pulled Matt's pole from his hands.

Both were forced into a sitting position as the snagged fish fought, pulling them into the flowing water. Somehow, they held onto the fish long enough to land them, but now they were sopping wet. Being a foot taller, and thanks to his greater strength the tall man managed to keep from being completely submerged. Thus, he was in a position to lift her from the water onto the bank. Upon scrambling ashore to join his "Kitten" Matt pulled a box of still dry matches from his shirt pocket, a pocket that was further protected from getting wet by his leather vest. He lit the already prepared fire.

While Matt cleaned the fish, Kitty stoked the fire. Soon it was hot enough to dry their clothes, which they quickly shed. At the moment the deep pool beckoned, their lust having been awakened by their current situation. It called forth an appetite greater than a competing one for food.

"Cowboy, what do you think you're doing?" she accused as he pulled her into an embrace while inching ever closer to the shore.

"Joining you for a bit of skinny dipping," he answered. "Might as well take advantage of already being naked and wet."

"Is that a fact?" she retorted, no longer putting up any resistance.

""That's a fact," he replied pulling her into the water that was only beginning to warm up from the cold winter.

It might have been that she was trying to hide her chattering teeth, but Kitty began to giggle as Matt swam around her. The giggle turned into a full-blown laugh when he managed to come up for air from his dive by swimming between her legs. They joined their bodies together in the six-foot depth of the water. Matt didn't bother to anchor them. He simply gave into the sensation of their bodies being buoyed by the water rather than supported by the solidity of either Kitty's or his bed.

Despite creating their own warmth, it was night and the water was closer to 40 than it was to 60 degrees. After 20 minutes they sought the relative warmth of their secluded picnic spot. As they were about to set foot on shore, he bent down to retrieve the champagne and the string holding the two cleaned catfish while she skipped ahead to be closer to the fire. Soon Kitty had all the utensils laid out and their plates two thirds full of fried chicken and mustardy potato salad while Matt built up the fire enough to quickly cook the spitted fish as he rotated them. Neither paid attention to their nearly dry clothes.

Having eaten their fill of taters, chicken and fish, the couple finished off the two blueberry tarts Matt had included in the basket to serve as their first dessert. Leaving the leftovers and dishes to be dealt with later on the now full bedrolls, the couple stretched out on the grass to gaze at the stars and the lightning bugs flitting about on the outer edges of their field of vision. The cricket song faded away.

Totally unaware of the passage of time as they lay on their backs Matt and Kitty turned from gazing at the full moon, counting the stars and any thoughts of more fishing toward each other. They didn't speak. It wasn't necessary. Their caresses and the light in their eyes, shining only for each other, told of the deepening love enveloping them. It was past midnight, but all that mattered was they were alone together.

Neither of them allowed thoughts of their friends missing them or possible interruptions to spoil this chance to appreciate each other. In fact, they let go of all thought. All that mattered was the overriding emotion stemming from pleasing each other as their bodies became one, drifted apart as Matt spent his seed and uniting again when physically possible until they fell into a deep sleep from sheer exhaustion.

Typically Matt, who tended to rise before dawn, awoke first. He had rebuilt the fire and packed away the leftover fish and was gathering up the dirty dishes and other utensils when Kitty stirred. She took the coffee pot from him, sending her lover to put what they'd used for last night's meal into the river to soak. While he was gone Kitty cracked a half dozen eggs, pouring their contents into the frying pan with a coating of bacon grease and fresh bacon, placing the shells in the pot before adding the water that remained in their canteens and coffee grounds. She placed both pot and pan in the fire so they could enjoy breakfast before heading home.

The sky to the east was brightening when they finished their meal. Matt went to retrieve the dishes that Delmonico's would deal with while Kitty dumped what remained of the coffee on the no longer needed fire. They couldn't take the time for anything more than a quick rinse of themselves and the tin tableware and cutlery and to refill the canteens while the horses drank their fill. As it was, the sun was climbing rapidly on the horizon. Besides, it was the coolest hour of the day. They could either set tongues wagging by showing up after Dodge was open for business, prolonging their night for two, or they could don their clothes before they caught their death. Practicality won out.

The clothing wasn't damp. It had been close enough to the fire to avoid that. What assailed them was completely unexpected.

"Yow!" they both yelled as cloth touched skin.

They stopped dressing, their eyes surveying each other's still mostly naked bodies. Both were covered with red, itchy bumps. Kitty was the first to find her voice.

"Cowboy, you thought of everything to make last night special for us. However, in your single-minded urge to be romantic for a change, you forgot one thing."

"What's that Kit?"

"You forgot that mosquitos tend to bite when you're by the water at night."


End file.
